I know it’s frowned upon to use 18 different meters and test 24 times a day with each… and to sport the Libre and Guardian… but I can’t stop. I’m INTRIGUED by the numbers.
I’m maybe a month out of my next endo appointment, and I’ll bring my bag of meters with me to check out against a lab draw, but I figured I would throw a quick question to you all to see WHY you believe in the Contour. For me, it is the highest reading of them all and consistently so. In general, occasional shifts aside, my Contour reads approximately 10-20 points higher than my ReliOn, which reads approximately 10 points higher than my OneTouch. My Libre is often right in line with the Contour, and my ReliOn seems to line up with my Guardian… when I’m stable, that is. Fluctuations are just a toss up. Even with all of these numbers, I do tend to pick one to base decisions off of and use it consistently, I’m just having a hard time figuring out which is the one that can be trusted.
What is your meter of choice, and how have you landed there?
The Contour came with my Medtronic pump and I liked that you can add more blood if the strip doesn’t have enough instead of wasting a strip. I used OneTouch for years and then the Freestyle that was built into my OmniPod PDM and neither allowed me to do this. I like that it reads higher because I know all meters are inaccurate and so at least if it always reads higher I am more likely to have better numbers most of the time if that makes sense. I rely on my Dexcom/xDrip throughout the day though, I often go more than a day without even calibrating and it’s pretty accurate. I can feel highs and lows very easily so I can get away with this though, and I am not afraid to over-bolus beacuse lows don’t impair me that much for whatever reason, they are just unpleasant.
There are so many meter comparison reviews out there in internet land, but most of them are really stupid. They list meter “features” and use all kinds of things for their ratings.
That sounds like a crappy way to compare meters.
The main thing is accuracy. The other stuff is trivial.
If you look at Gary Scheiner’s comparison, which is just for meter accuracy (from 2016, unfortunately), Contour has 3 of the top 5 meters, including #1.
Additionally, the Contour strips are very inexpensive on Amazon.
So - accurate and cheap - that makes Contour the meter of choice.
On FUD, you hear a lot of “I like this meter and this meter” or “this meter is good and this meter is bad”.
If you read all of the comments, and I don’t think I have ever heard anyone say the Contour is bad.
Different meters will work differently for different people. Everyone’s blood is chemically unique from others and changes within the individual over time. All the meter does is measure an electrochemical reaction in the strip. The many many different properties of the blood all affect this electrochemical reaction, but of course primarily glucose.
It is for these reasons that meter reviews and comparisons on the internet or anywhere else are essentially nonsense unless it’s an individual comparing their own experience with it…
I think the most important thing is to find one that the individual trusts, fits their life and budget, and they’re comfortable with…
Granted some are more likely to be garbage than others due to aspects like quality control and such. Think the important thing is for each person to find what works for them…
EH uses the Freestyle meters because they use very little blood. He started with an AccuCheck meter they gave him at the doctor’s office, and it took a giant amount of blood and his fingers got shot (and he uses his fingers as a computer scientist typing every day, so that wasn’t working).
That being said, I don’t think we even THOUGHT about accuracy. They sell it to use for diabetes, the strips are stupid expensive, ergo it should work. And that was ten years ago and we’ve not switched. (True story: I hate change! HATE IT! So I think that’s another reason - I haven’t been pushing for any different things in meter-land because it sorta seems like it works).
We should try out the Contour but the thought of fighting with the doctor/pharmacy/insurance for another new and different RX makes me want to climb back into bed and never get out.
The Freestyle meters consistently show up as very accurate. Just expensive. If it is in your budget, go for it. We just purchase the Contour strips on the open market to supplement what our insurance will provide. Being able to use as little blood as the Freestyle strips allow, is really nice. One of our physician friends with T1 sticks in the meat at the base of his thumb to get his blood. Works well.
I know someone else who just uses two fingers instead of all of them, which seemed to work for him!
EH always uses the sides of his fingers so the pads don’t get wrecked. He’s got some skin thing that makes all the top layers of skin on his fingers peel off if he uses certain soaps/shampoos/dish soaps and hot water, so maybe that is a confounding factor.
And yes, the Freestyle strips are stupid expensive. But our insurance has covered them at varying rates over the years and truthfully he’s not testing 20+ times a day.
@Eric I’ll pick up a Contour meter and strips and test it out. I can’t remember if that’s what I got for my mom earlier this year or not. Maybe I’ll steal hers. She’s not using it.
Here’s a portion of a table grabbed from a study from last summer… Contour was on top, but there are several other good meters to choose from as well: (source)
Makes perfect sense. Hadn’t thought of it in that way, and I guess I’d rather have it overshoot than undershoot, too. I knew I had to drop OneTouch for that reason…because I just don’t trust how much lower it reads than the others.
And that’s what I thought I had in my ReliOn, but it didn’t make any of lists.[quote=“Eric, post:3, topic:4506”]
On FUD, you hear a lot of “I like this meter and this meter” or “this meter is good and this meter is bad”.
If you read all of the comments, and I don’t think I have ever heard anyone say the Contour is bad.
[/quote]
I don’t take much stock in online meter reviews, but I was curious about the general vote of confidence it receives here. But you say this vote of confidence IS based on online reviews… and price and experience as well. Have you ever tested it against a lab draw?? Or do you have your own lab at home? Because I could see that…
My son has only been a diabetic for 2.5 years, over that time we have used an Aviva plus, One Touch Ultra 2, and a Contour Next. Honestly, all of them are fine. Yes, we weren’t excited about the One Touch, but our insurance at the time had a $5 copay for 200 strips per month, so we got excited enough about that one to use it for a year or so.
I think the difference between meters is a bit overblown. They get the job done, and you can learn to trust any meter as long as it isn’t a random number generator. The One Touch was closest to a random number generator, although it wasn’t really that bad, we would just take a second reading more often than the others.
With our current insurance, we got the Contour Next because of good reviews and nice small size. My son can leave the house when he isn’t pumping with everything he needs in that one small case (syringes, strips, insulin pen cartridge). Everything but an alcohol swab…
I’ve never used the contour. The only option my insurance covers is OneTouch, which I’m not terribly impressed with and I buy true metrix out of pocket… which aren’t great either but I really like the tiny True Go meter
I agree with Chris, almost any meter will do if it fits your lifestyle and budget and you learn to deal with it’s particular idiosyncrasies in your particular case
My priorities with a meter are— small size, easy use, no big case to mess around with, affordable, and available on amazon prime
Libre included? I’ve got a lot of respect for mine, but it does seem over eager sometimes. [quote=“Chris, post:8, topic:4506”]
One of our physician friends with T1 sticks in the meat at the base of his thumb to get his blood. Works well.
[/quote]
I had someone show me how to do it right next to the thumbnail. Said there were no nerves there. I found a nerve with my first try.
I pretty much use one, but I look at the others right before testing so maybe one day…[quote=“TravelingOn, post:9, topic:4506”]
I’ll pick up a Contour meter and strips and test it out.
[/quote]
I do like the contour very much, and I was able to get the strips for cheaper than my OneTouch prescription. I’m just trying to figure out what I’m basing this on because I really liked my ReliOn… right up until I used the contour, and they do NOT produce the same numbers.
Thanks! That’s pretty convincing evidence, I guess. My contour is on top, and the ReliOn that I use is not even on the list. I’m trying to wrap my brain around that…
[quote=“TravelingOn, post:5, topic:4506”]